The 24-month facility allowed the client to refinance an existing loan and provided additional funds to prepare the scheme for onward development and delivery.

Once completed, the residential scheme will also include two new schools, a large sports park, a community centre and employment, retail, and leisure spaces

A new cycle network will run through the site, and a park and ride facility will connect it to Swindon town centre.

The development is part of Swindon Borough Council’s New Eastern Villages (NEV) masterplan, which covers approximately 1,800-acres to the east of Swindon.

The project will see the long-term delivery of around 8,000 new homes, community facilities, health centres and 99-acres of employment space.

•   What will affect valuations in 2022 and beyond?
•   Octopus Real Estate partners with Twenty7Tec
•   Octopus secures £450m funding to lend in UK commercial property market
•   Octopus enters commercial lending market in Ireland

Dominic Gibson, investment director at Octopus Real Estate, said: “We’re extremely pleased to have worked with Capital Land to fund this key regional development site. 

“Octopus has always had a strong appetite for sites with planning consents that meet local demand, and this is a prime example. 

“The Capital Land team have worked tirelessly to deliver the NEV masterplan, which this sizeable loan will support. 

“This phase of the scheme will deliver much-needed housing stock to the area by providing over 230 affordable units, alongside 1,320 open market homes. 

“As a B Corp, Octopus is committed to supporting borrowers like Capital Land that intend to deliver assets which positively transform local areas. 

“The loan demonstrates our appetite and ability to provide large facilities, and underlines our ongoing support for the UK and Ireland’s regional markets.”

Jeremy Francis, chief executive at Capital Land Property Group, commented: “We’ve worked with the local authorities on the NEV for over a decade and are incredibly excited to be nearing the scheme’s development phase. 

“It’s a hugely important community extension for Swindon, so it’s been great to work with a major lender like Octopus to take it to the next stages of delivery. 

“The relationship was transparent and straightforward from the outset, and it was always clear that the Octopus team had the experience to understand large-scale assets and lending. 

“We truly believe that the NEV will offer the area much-needed attainable high-quality housing. 

“The combination of green space, connectivity and considerate design will underpin a strong new community and fantastic quality of life for generations to come.”